Declaring War
by AyLee Cambell
Summary: This takes place almost two years after Dino Thunder. Tommy and Kim are now friends, but what if Tommy decides that's not what he wants?
1. Chapter 1

Declaring War

* * *

Okay, just some stuff you should probably know, this happens about a year and a half after Dino Thunder. Tommy is still in Reefside, and Kimberly and him have made up and have started talking and being friends again.

Kimberly lives about two hours away from Reefside and has her own business. She's an interior decorator.

* * *

It all started with a phone call.

"I'm declaring war."

"Tommy?" Kim asked, a mix of startled shock and confusion. When she had seen his name on her caller id, she hadn't expected those to be his first words to her.

They had gotten over any differences they had once had and were now friends again, so they talked pretty often, so she wasn't surprised that he was calling her, only about what he had just said. They had been good friends again for a little over a year now and so she was a little confused over what he could possibly be declaring war over. It worried her for a moment.

What if he was evil again? She wondered, but shrugged it off. She was pretty sure if he was evil again he wouldn't phone her to make threats, he'd just appear on her doorstep or something.

"Yeah, it's me. I've been thinking, and I finally figured things out. But I thought it was only fair that I gave you a warning. I don't want you to be able to argue later that I didn't do this right." He told her, smirking a little though she couldn't see it.

"Okay, Tommy now your just confusing me. What are you talking about? What are you declaring war about?" She asked, sitting down on her chair to get comfortable. Sometimes Tommy had a habit of rattling on and on and if this was one of those times then she wanted to at least be comfortable.

"Nope, I'm not going to tell you, I'll let you figure it out for yourself. It should be made clear enough soon but in the meantime, just remember. I declare war." He told her and with a slightly evil laugh, he hung up.

Kim sighed as she looked down at her phone and shook her head. Sometimes Tommy could be so weird, but whatever it was that he was talking about had her slightly worried.

Out of all of them, Tommy was the one who had been evil the longest amount of time and so he was the best strategist when he put his mind to something, and if he was declaring war against her then she had every right to be slightly worried.

Still though, she was a female, and had been evil herself for a time or two (even became the queen of evil for about an hour or so) and if he messed with her, well, he was going to realize why it was never a good thing to mess with a former pink ranger.

Yes, Yellow rangers were the ones you feared to piss off. They were capable of things that you didn't even want to know about, they would get revenge that would make you wonder how they even did it. (Sometimes they even made you do it to yourself, which doubled the wonder and made you less likely piss them off again. She'd seen Trini do this a time or two.)

It was the Yellow rangers ability to manipulate the situation, any situation (and that they could manipulate it, even when you were guarding against them), to their benefit, and their willingness to use violence, that made them such a threat to others when pissed that most of the time they were left alone.

But under the threat of a Yellow ranger, was the even bigger threat of the pink ranger.

Most of the other rangers forgot about the Pink ranger, because they were so hard to push to their danger level. The Pinks were the _**sweet**_ ones, the ones who would never do _**anything**_ like **_that._**

This is why it took them by surprise when a Pink reached her limit and she lost it. It was the point in time when they showed the other rangers that Rita chose the wrong ranger to make evil. As the heart of the team, which the Pink rangers tended to be, they knew each member's strengths and weakness, and their biggest fears and insecurities.

And sure, they wouldn't ever harm their friends, or do anything that could be considered truly evil, but sometimes they got pretty darn close.

So yeah, she was a little worried, but she knew that no matter what he threw at her, she'd be ready.

* * *

Only she wasn't ready.

Out of all the ways for Tommy to attack, flowers had not been something she thought she would have to expect.

But the next day, there sitting on her desk, were two dozen roses.

Pink and White roses, with a note saying: Thinking of you, Tommy.

Confused, she picked up her phone.

He answered on the third ring.

"So did you like the roses? They used to be your favorite." He asked, sitting at his computer, working on a few things for his upcoming class while he talked to her.

"You know, when you said you were declaring war, flowers wasn't what I was expecting. You paying one of my employees to set of the sprinkler system, maybe, but not two dozen roses." She told him dryly.

"But you did enjoy the roses?" He questioned, amused.

"Roses are still my favorites, so yes, I am enjoying them. But what is this? A smell the roses moment, right before you launch your first attack?" She questioned.

Tommy chuckled at the confusion in her voice. "If you haven't figured it out yet, Kim, I'm not going to tell you. But when you do figure it out, let me know." He told her, before laughing again.

"You know it creeps me out whenever you laugh like that. It always makes us think of your evil days." She told him.

He laughed again, this time a normal laugh. "I haven't turned evil on you Kim, but I have to go; class is almost ready to start. Call me when you figure it out." He told her, hanging up.

She looked at the phone, once again, eyes narrowed. "What are you up to, Oliver?" She questioned, putting her phone back on the hook.

* * *

It took her about 3 days to finally clue in and figure it out. The reason it took her so long to realize, she figured, was because she honestly wasn't expecting it.

But after 3 days of flowers, a new batch of two dozen white and pink, every morning and her favorite food from her favorite local restaurant being delivered to her home every night. (Italian food from a little place she had found when she moved there and had mentioned to Tommy once or twice, a place that doesn't even deliver.)

And, Chinese or Mexican take out delivered for lunch, along with Tommy emailing her jokes daily, it finally clicked and she called him.

"Are you trying to seduce me?" She questioned, in absolute disbelief.

Tommy chuckled. "I thought it was going to take you at least two more days to notice." He told her, amused.

"What-" She started to say then stopped before starting up again. "Why?" She questioned, at a loss for words.

"Because Kim, for me, you're the one, you're it. Nobody else comes close and nobody else ever will. We were young when things didn't work out, but we're not the same people we once were. This time, things are different, we're older, and we know what's out there and what we want. I want you, I've always wanted you and now I'm smart enough to fight for what I want instead of just letting you go without doing anything. So you can fight this, but I'm going to wear you out and you're going to give in, because Kim, you want me too." He told her.

Kim was silent. She was too busy thinking about what he had just said and what it all meant to even think of talking back. It brought up feelings she had thought she buried or had disappeared years ago.

"Damnit Tommy, what do you expect me to say to that?" She demanded.

He laughed in amusement.

"I don't expect you to say anything right now, I'd imagine that you're confused right now and need sometime to think about things and how you feel. But Kim, I did warn you, and if you think I'm going to quit trying to get you to admit you love me too, I'm not. I'm going to throw everything I've got at you until you give in, cause Kim? I'm playing for keeps." He told her.

"Tommy-" She started, not quite sure what she was going to say but he interrupted her before she could find out.

"Goodnight Kim." He told her, and then he hung up.

Kim sighed, tossing her phone to the side. "What am I supposed to do with you Tommy?" She mused for a moment before getting up and heading towards her bedroom. She had some thinking to do, she might as well try to get comfortable doing it, even if there was no way she was going to be able to sleep.

* * *

Alright that is it for the first chapter but there is still some more, so don't worry. Anyway, please review and tell me if you like it. Thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

Declaring War

**Disclaimer: I don't own the power rangers. If I did, well, you'd know it.**

Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I love you all, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Kim was dressed in her comfiest set of sweats and a tank top. She had a glass of wine in one hand, papers from work in front of her, and the phone attached to her ear.

"Trini, my house is starting to look like a rose garden. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing, but still. Tommy cannot just get away with declaring war and thinking I'm going to fall all over myself to get back with him. Or that I'll melt with pink and white roses and my favorite foods. He will not win Trini! I wont let him." Kim said, determined.

Trini laughed on the other end. "Maybe you shouldn't see this as war. He sure as hell shouldn't have called it war and expect you not to fight it. You two are the most stubborn people I've ever met, and we know a lot of stubborn people. So, don't think of this as war, think of it as his way of telling you he still cares about you, and if you were being honest with yourself instead of nervous or afraid, you'd know that you cared about him too." Trini told her.

Kim winced and took a drink of wine. "Maybe I do still care about him." She admitted. "But what if that's not enough? What if we start dating again and we find out that we don't fit together any more? Then what, we try to be friends, again?" She asked, worried.

Kim knew that Trini was right, the reason she was even putting up a fight against Tommy was because she was nervous and afraid of where it would lead them if and when she gave in. And because Tommy had done something foolish by declaring war and expecting her to not fight it just because.

Hadn't he learned not to challenge a fellow ranger yet? You would think that he would realize that would be one of the worst things he could do. A ranger (even a former ranger) didn't exactly know when to quit, and a challenged ranger, well, they were even worse come quitting time.

"Alright, Kim, just think about it. Try not to fight your feelings as much as you want to and try not to let any fears get in your way. You used to always want to conquer anything that made you scared, what changed?" Trini asked, continuing the conversation when Kimberly paused.

"Remember, you don't know where you'll end up unless you at least try to get somewhere. I'd say just go for it, don't hold yourself back. That isn't like you." Trini told her, she was about to say more when she heard a small crashing sound.

"But I've got to go pull Billy away from the lab before we loose power, again. I miss you, talking to you isn't enough sometimes, and the girls miss you too. You should visit soon." Trini said.

"I will, I promise. I miss you all too. Say hi to Billy and the girls for me and tell them goodnight. Bye Trini, I'll talk to you soon." Kim said, getting ready to get off the phone.

"Bye Kim, goodnight. Oh! Kim, give Tommy hell." Trini told her laughing slightly as they both disconnected.

Kim laughed, smiling as she put the phone down. "Will do Trini, will do." She said out-loud as she pulled her work into her lap and relaxed into her couch.

Before she could even get into her work or fully relaxed the doorbell rang. With a sigh and a roll of her eyes Kimberly got up.

"You're kidding me." She mumbled as she walked over to her door.

"What is it this time? More take out?" She mumbled sarcastically right before she got to the door.

But when she opened the door it wasn't take-out that was waiting for her.

"Tommy?" Kim asked, shocked. "What are you doing here, don't you have classes tomorrow?" She asked.

Tommy looked at her, a slight smirk on his lips as he gestured to her. "Can I come in? Or am I only welcome outside?" He teased her.

"Come on in." Kim said, stepping away from the door and holding it open for him to pass. The fact that he was carrying a duffle bag did not go unnoticed by her.

"What's the bag for?" She asked, getting an uneasy feeling. She so knew where this was heading.

"It's spring break, so no classes. So I thought I'd come visit. Hope you don't mind but you did tell me that you had a guest room with my name on it anytime I was in town." He told her, grinning smugly at her.

Kim remembered telling him that, almost a year ago. She certainly hadn't expected it to come back and bite her in the ass but she should have been expecting something like this to happen, but she had been unprepared for it.

"Not at all, I don't mind a bit." She said, somewhat tightly, and panicking inside. She wasn't ready for this! She hadn't fully figured out her feelings yet or decided what she was going to do.

Her eyes narrowed, oh he was good. Throwing her off balance, hitting her with big decisions then not giving her the proper time to think everything through. It seemed that Tommy hadn't been kidding when he said he wasn't going to play fair.

"Great, then if you don't mind, we'll get to see each other a lot over the next week. We can have dinner, sightsee, you can show me around again, and maybe I'll even take you shopping." He told her, dropping his duffle on the floor by her entryway table.

Kim almost whimpered. Shopping. The basturd, he was not supposed to try to bribe her with shopping. It was her weakness, and he so totally knew it. But still, she had never imagined that he would pull that out of the arsenal. She had thought he'd be too smart, too cunning to pull that option out. But apparently he knew that as much torture as it would be on him, it was still one of her biggest weaknesses.

Shaking it off she gave him a small smile. "You remember where the guest room is right? I was just about to pick up my papers and head to bed." She told him, knowing that she probably wasn't going to get much sleep that night. Not with him right down the hallway from her.

Tommy nodded. "Yeah, it hasn't been that long since I was last here. I'll let you get your sleep then, you have work in the morning right?" He asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"Yeah, need to be in by 9am. Best thing about being the boss, I get to make my own hours." She joked, a bit uncomfortable. She wasn't quite sure how she was supposed to react towards Tommy at the moment.

He had told her that he was in love with her and was trying to win her back, and she was still feeling confused over how she felt and what she was going to do. She had a feeling that the nervousness she had been feeling before just got kicked up a notch or two with him actually here though. Which left her a bit uncomfortable, and she was afraid that it showed.

Shaking it off she walked into the living room to collect the paperwork she had left in there, aware that Tommy was following her.

"You're lucky. Most days I have to be at work by 7:30 am." He told her, leaning against the doorframe and watched her pick up her papers. He knew he was making her nervous, and he couldn't help but smile a little at that, he thought it was a good sign.

If she was nervous or uncomfortable then she obviously felt something. So he was probably getting to her, which was good for him. He had obviously thrown her off by his surprise arrival, and it was showing slightly. Still though, he still had one more thing he had to do before he could call it a night.

"You never were a morning person." Kimberly teased throwing him a smile as she finished collecting her work and put it into her briefcase.

"I wasn't before, but after a few years of getting up that early it's beginning to become a habit." He told her, following her as she walked down the hall towards the bedrooms. He paused for a moment only to pick up his duffle bag before continuing behind her.

"Hey Kim." He called, when she didn't reply.

"Yeah?" She asked, slightly distracted. She wanted to be in the safety of her room, where she could think, and go through the mini panic attack she'd wanted to do since the moment she saw him on her doorstep.

"Need anything else?" She asked, not being able to help but be polite. He was, if nothing else, still a friend. Turning around to look at him though, turned out to be a mistake. He had been right behind her most of the way so turning put them face to face and in a very close proximity to each other. There was a distance of maybe two inches separating them.

If it wouldn't have told him that he was getting to her Kim would have either pushed him back or stepped back herself, but she didn't have any choice, so she stayed where she was.

"Yeah, I just wanted to say thanks for letting me stay." He told her, smiling down at her, his eyes sparkling with amusement. He knew he was affecting her. "And I wanted to say goodnight."

"No problem Tommy." She told him, looking up to meet his gaze.

Which, as she looked back, wasn't the smartest thing she could have done.

Tommy used this to his advantage as he leaned down slightly to kiss her, on the lips.

It was meant to be a chaste kiss, a light one to ease into something more later. After a moment though, it became obvious that between the two of them, there would never be a thing called a chaste kiss. The kiss they shared had heat to it. It reminded her of all the heated kisses they had shared in their youth, but only magnified by 100.

They had never lacked passion in their youth, and that hadn't changed in their adulthood. The kiss lasted only a minute or two before Tommy pulled away, leaning his forehead against hers but it was seared into her memory.

Her brain was screaming 'this is not good!' while her body was screaming something that sounded like 'more!' and 'finish what you started!'

The worst part was she wasn't sure which one she agreed with more.

It didn't help either that he was being so sweet about the whole thing. After a moment to get their breath back he kissed her forehead and took a couple steps backwards. Giving her some space and breathing room.

Tommy smiled down at her, a smile that totally disarmed her because it reminded her so much of the ones he used to give her when they were both younger and everything was as close to perfect as they were allowed to get.

"Anyway, goodnight beautiful." He told her, then turned and walked into the guest room and closed the door, sure that he had given her enough to think about for that night.

Kim blinked at the door he had disappeared into, too stunned to speak. It took her a moment but she finally remembered to go into her own room and close the door behind her. Walking over to her bed she threw herself down on it and stared up at her ceiling and took a moment to think through what had just happened.

"Oh, he's good." She mumbled, turning over and shoving her head into her pillow so that hopefully the pillow would muffle the sound and he wouldn't hear her scream.

* * *

"Good morning Ms. Hart!" Beth, her secretary announced when she saw her.

Kim glared at her the next morning (when she wasn't looking) as soon as she heard the greeting. She didn't see what was so great about this morning. In fact, so far it hadn't been very good.

First she had woken up to breakfast being made, by Tommy, and when she went downstairs what did she see? Tommy in his boxers.

Tommy in his boxers and nothing else.

Yeah, this morning wasn't so nice. He was making this difficult for her. How the hell was she supposed to have a fighting chance when the man made her coffee and was nearly naked? Huh? What kind of defense against that was she supposed to have? The basturd was probably all happy and perky cause he knew, he just freaking knew, that he got to her. First with last night, and now with this morning. He was going to be freaking impossible!

So okay, breakfast, coffee, and nearly naked Tommy. You would think that she would be in a good mood instead of a cranky one right? Wrong. He was torturing her and it wasn't fair. He was not supposed to be able to do this to her.

With a sigh Kim shook her head, trying to forget that morning and Tommy's smug grin, telling her that he knew exactly what he was doing to her.

With a second sigh, she tossed her briefcase on her desk and plopped down in her desk chair, and leaned her head back to stare up at the ceiling.

He was so winning, and at this point Kim was willing to bet that even she was betting he was going to win. But still, even if he was going to win she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

A slightly evil grin covered her lips as an idea formed in her head. While she knew what her next move would be. It was perfect, it would help her release some stress and torture Tommy in more then one way, and he couldn't even blame her. He had come up with the idea after all.

That's right.

Kim was going to take him shopping.

* * *

So that's the second chapter. Please review and let me know what you think! Thanks!


	3. Chapter 3

**Declaring War**

Thank you to everyone who reviewed! Here is the next chapter, so I hope all of you enjoy!

Disclaimer: If I owned them, you'd know I did. Sadly though, I don't. Happy? Way to kill the dream...

* * *

Kim smirked as they walked into the mall. It hadn't taken all that long for her to convince Tommy to go shopping with her. Apparently he was serious about winning her over, so he had agreed to go with her.

Of course when he agreed he had absolutly no idea what he had gotten himself into.

Oh, he thought he knew what this was going to be like. He had gone shopping with her before when they were younger. During those times he couldn't think of an excuse quick enough to get out of it or he just couldn't tell her no when she asked him.

But there were major differences in how things were now compared to how they used to be back in high school. Back then she had been his girlfriend, or wanted to be, so she had gone easy on him, been nice enough not to inflict the whole terror of what it was like to go shopping with her. Ask Jason or Billy, once had been more than enough for them, and now, it was going to be Tommy's turn. Because even if she loved him - and she was still thinking about it - well, he so had this coming to him.

He had to pay.

* * *

Tommy was tired, not only was he tired though, he was bored, and hungry, and really wanted to sit down for more than five minutes. His feet hurt, he was carrying more bags then he could possibly count, his head was still dizzy from the perfume shop they had gone through thirty minutes and his inner voice - who sounded disturbingly like his best friend Jason - was telling him that he sounded like a girl.

Not to mention he really had to pee.

They had been shopping now for 5 hours straight now without stopping. The only kind of break he'd gotten was to stand in the store while she tried on practically every item that they stocked in her size.

He had never quite believed the jokes or stories Billy and Jason had told him about Kimberly's shopping trips. Having been on quite a few himself and knowing that they were not as bad as what the two had said, he had thought they had exaggerated, but now, he was wondering if they had always been telling the truth and Kim had just not put him through the wringer before now.

Which would mean that she was putting him through the full extent now. Either that or she had changed her shopping style a lot in the years that had passed. He had a feeling though, that she had stopped playing easy. Which meant that he was getting to her, and he'd feel better about that later. Right then he couldn't feel happy about anything but getting out of there.

"Kim." He said, pausing for a moment when he realized that her name had come out more like a whine then his regular voice. Coughing for a moment he started again, this time in his regular tone of voice.

"Can we take a break? Maybe get something to eat or something?" He asked her hopefully.

* * *

Kim made sure Tommy couldn't see her when she smiled. He was close to his breaking point, and now all she had to do was push him over the cliff.

She turned to look at him, hiding her amusement at seeing him holding all the bags full of the things she had purchased. She had a brief moment of thinking that she had maybe gone a little overboard on buying things but shrugged it off. She had been long overdue for a shopping spree and there had been some major sales so she wasn't going to feel to bad about it.

She hummed a moment, as if thinking about it. "Well, maybe you could take a moment." She said, and waited for the perfect moment before she continued. "Could you take the bags back to the car for me? You're getting a little weighted down and we're going to need the space. But get back soon would you? I think I'm gonna buy a couple things." She told him.

"Right, I'll be right back." Tommy told her, turning and walking away.

Kim smirked as she heard him cursing under his breath.

He was close. Now the torture could really begin.

* * *

When Tommy came back to the clothing store Kim had been in when he left he looked around before he realized that she wasn't in there. None of the dressing rooms were in use so he knew she wasn't hiding out in one of them.

He sighed as he pulled out his cell phone and dialed her cell.

"Hey!" Her cheerful voice made him ground his teeth.

"Kim, where are you?" He asked, trying to keep his annoyance out of his voice.

"Oh, you took too long. I got bored in there so I moved on to a different store. It's three stores down, I'll see you in there." She told him then hung up before he could hear her laugh.

"Took to long?" He asked in disbelief as he stared down at his phone. "You have got to be kidding me." He muttered as he put his cell phone away and walked out of the store and started down to the store she was in.

There was no way he had taken too long. All he had done was put the bags away and gone to the bathroom. He hadn't even stopped to get anything to eat figuring she might get upset if he did take too long.

He looked up, taking a moment to pray that this shopping trip would soon be over. He didn't know how much more he could take, even if it had been somewhat his idea. (Which he was going to bash his head against the wall later for.) He loved Kimberly, and he would do almost anything for her, but he didn't ever want to go shopping with her again.

Still though he had to finish living through this trip before he could avoid the next one. So now he had to find her.

Reaching the store she said she would be in he froze as he looked at the display before he looked up at the name of the store and took a deep breath to gather his strength. He had a feeling he was going to need it.

The name of the store?

Unmentionables

* * *

**  
**Kim almost crackled with glee as she came out of the dressing room, holding a few different pieces of underwear and lingerie. The look on Tommy's face was priceless. His eyes were wide and his face was slightly pale. She couldn't help the slight smirk as she saw it so she turned away for a moment to look at the saleslady. Saying thanks she walked towards Tommy.

"So I can't decide, which one would look better? Ice mint mist or dusty morning pink?" She asked him, holding up two different colors of the same bra set.

She watched as Tommy gulped as he looked from one set to the other, trying to decide which one to choose. On one hand, her color had always been pink so he had associated that color with her so it had always been a soft spot for him, seeing her in pink. On the other hand the other color was a light green, a color of his, and seeing Kim in his colors - even his old colors did something to him.

After a moment Kim watched him as he pointed to the green one.

She had a pretty good guess as to why he had chosen the ice mint mist over the dusty morning pink. It was the same reason why she had worn a lot of white along with her pink back when they were dating.

Narrowing her eyes as if to consider she shrugged. "I think I'll take both, and I've still got to get a couple of more things." She told him, turning and walking over to a rack of different items. She grinned when she heard him whimper.

She had _**so**_ won this round.

* * *

Thank you, and please review!


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own the power rangers or anything else - except for Aleece, she is mine. If anyone wants to use her, please ask first!

* * *

Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I love you all so much!

I'm glad that you like this so much so far and I hope you enjoy this chapter and continue to like my story!

* * *

After shopping at Unmentionables, Kim had declared herself done shopping, much to Tommy's relief and the two had decided to head home. Both had agreed to take out because after all the work they'd gone through in the mall both were hungry and neither one of them wanted to cook.

So after a few minutes of debate the decided on the traditional night in food. Pizza and beer. So now, an hour and a half later, Tommy and Kim were both in her living room eating and watching a movie. Though to be honest they weren't really watching the movie, they were remembering funny stories from their past or trying to out do the other with a story that the other hadn't heard before.

Like the time when Kim was seven and Jason had tied Zack to a tree.

So they were sitting on the couch flinging stories back and forth when she realized what was happening. They were both sitting there, relaxing, having a good time.

Oh he was good.

Since he had so obviously lost at the mall he had kicked it into overdrive when they got home, making sure that she was relaxed and having a good time - letting her shields down, letting him in.

Damnit, he was twisting this around to his advantage again. And the worst part was that she was having such a good time that she didn't want to ruin it, didn't want to call it a night.

Oh yeah, he was good. That bastard.

* * *

Tommy smiled as he grabbed two more beers for them. Things had started looking up since they got back home. Except for a small moment where Kim had paused for a few moments, where he had been afraid she had figured out what was happening, everything was going great. She was relaxed, even comfortable around him, like she had been before this week. Conversation was running smoothly and there hadn't been any of the panic she'd shown since he had appeared on her doorstep.

It was almost as if they had called a truce or momentarily called pause. Which, they hadn't, he thought with a slight smirk.

No, this was a way of subtly getting her to relax towards him, enough for him to gain some ground after the humiliating defeat he had suffered at the mall. He had underestimated her, he knew that now. He also knew that he never wanted to go shopping with her again unless the shopping trips reverted back to the ones she used to take him on when they were younger.

Wiping the smirk from his face he walked back into the living room, handing her a beer as he sat down next to her. He watched as she yawned and set the beer aside.

"Tired?" He asked, knowing that they both had had a long day and that she still had to go into work tomorrow.

"Yeah, as fun as this was I think I'm gonna head to bed." She said, standing up and moving to walk down the hall towards her bedroom.

"I'll leave the pick up for tomorrow." She told him, gesturing to the pizza box and bottles that were on her table as he turned off the TV.

"I'll pick it up while you're at work." He told her, following her down the hall. When she stopped outside her door he stepped up close behind her.

He had been through hell today, there was no way that he was going to walk away without getting at least a kiss from her.

So tugging her back into his arms he paused for a moment, to see if she was going to protest, before he kissed her.

* * *

Kim didn't protest the kiss, being honest with herself enough to know that she did want to be kissed by him again. What she didn't realize though was that she really wanted more than that too, and Tommy was all too happy to go as far as she was willing to let him go.

But she didn't stop to think over what she was doing when all she could feel was him against her and what he was making her feel at the moment. Pulling him closer, all she wanted right then was more.

* * *

Tommy groaned into her mouth right after she wrapped her armed around his neck and pulled him closer to her. And when he was going to pull away and tell her goodnight he was pleasantly surprised when she instead pulled him into her room with him.

He wasn't going to let her rethink this so instead of letting up he pulled her closer to him as they back walked to her bed.

It wasn't until Kim woke up that she realized what had just happened.

* * *

"We had **_sex_**. Tommy and I had sex. Last night, Tommy and I did **_it_**."

They were the first words that she had said since she had woken up next to Tommy. Sneaking away hadn't been easy but she had pulled on every last skill she had once possessed as a ninja to leave the house without waking him.

So now, here she was, on the phone at work telling her friend all about it while still in a state of shock.

She couldn't believe she had let it happen. Yes, it had been good, terrific actually, but they were in a war! She had just won a battle and what did she do? Wave the flag in his face and gave him the next battle that came along without even putting up a fight! That just wasn't how it was supposed to go.

Not that she regretted the sex, no - not that, but she didn't have to like the timing.

Sex with Tommy had always been terrific, absolutely mind blowing. Even when they had been teenagers, but now as adults, it seemed like so much more.

Plus now she was slightly frantic and trying to review her feelings to find out how she really did feel about him, and the answer was making her even more frantic.

"Damnit, I might actually love the bastard." She muttered and heard Aleece laugh.

"This isn't funny!" Kim told her.

"Of course it is." Aleece said. "Didn't I go through this with Jason a couple years ago? What was it you told me then? Enjoy the chase because you know how this is going to end? I told you almost exactly what you're telling me now and you laughed at me then, now it's my turn. I think it has something to do with Karma." Aleece teased her friend.

Kim sighed, knowing she was right.

Aleece and Kim had met years ago, and had almost instantly became friends. She had been the first one to later find out that not only did Aleece come from a different planet, but that she had once been a ranger as well.

Then a couple of years ago Jason had stopped to visit while in town and had fallen for Aleece. Which Aleece didn't take to well. But Jason hadn't given up and persisted until Aleece finally gave him a chance. Now the two were happily married and Kim still loved to tease Aleece about it, or she had until recently.

"Hey, you don't think that Tommy got this idea from Jason do you?" Kim asked and both girls paused a moment to think about it.

"It's possible. But that isn't what's important. You think you might just love Tommy, so what are you going to do?" Aleece asked her.

"I don't know." Kim answered, wanting to hit her head against the wall. "I think I love him, but I'm not completely sure. We're adults now, and we get along great as friends but what if we try a relationship and it doesn't work out, again? Then what, we pick up the pieces and go on? I'm not sure it's possible for a second time, and I don't want to loose him again."

"I think you're letting your fears rule you. Wasn't the reason you broke up all those years ago because you were in a new place and you were afraid and let the insecurities overwhelm you? So are you really going to let them ruin this for you again but this time before you even give it a shot? I think you love him, and I think you know it but are too afraid to admit it to yourself because as soon as you do you'll have to do something about it and that scares you. But as long as you deny it then it isn't real and you can continue playing this game without thinking about the feelings that your both putting on the line." Aleece told her, getting serious.

During the time she'd been dodging Jason's attempts to snare her, Kim had finally pulled her to the side and told her straight out what she thought. It had made Aleece take a really good look at what she was doing and what she was feeling and why she was running. Now, it was Aleece's turn to talk to Kim.

"Meanie." Kim said, then paused to think about it. She knew that she loved Tommy, had never really stopped loving him, and yes, that scared the hell out of her. Scared her so much she hadn't wanted to admit she felt anything more for him then friendship.

"I hate that your right." She mumbled, remembering the words Aleece had once told her after they talked.

"No you don't." Aleece told her, laughing. "Cause I'm right all the time and you still love me."

"Yeah, yeah." Kim said, then took a breath and continued talking. "But what if I'm not ready to just announce how I feel? This is so going to take some time to get used to and some time to gear up to actually say something about it."

Kim narrowed her eyes as a new thought hit her. "It really doesn't help that he's just sitting there, waiting for me to come home. How am I supposed to deal with all of this? Not go home? He's going to want to talk about it."

"Hey, as long as you've admitted it to yourself you're going the right way. So now what you do is continue to play the game. Tommy's smart enough to know that last night was a battle, not the whole war. He's going to think he's winning again, so use that to your advantage. Go home and jump him until he can't think anymore." Aleece told her.

Kim laughed. "That easy huh? Don't let him talk, just jump him till he shuts up?" She repeated back then laughed again, thinking it through. "I guess that wouldn't be too hard to do."

"Nope, and you'll have some fun doing it. And the best part is, he wont be expecting that. He'll be expecting you to be freaked out, which you were - but he doesn't have to know that. This way you win the next round and you'll be closer to the end result that you both now want, and you'll have him confused because that isn't the way he thinks you were going to react." She told her.

Kim paused a moment to think about it. "Humm, you know that isn't a bad plan of action."

"Nope, it isn't. So want to fill me in on what happened yesterday? You told me what was happening between you two before yesterday but I haven't gotten to hear what lead up to you two having sex." Aleece said.

Kim leaned back in her chair, getting comfortable. She didn't have any meetings until after lunch so she had time to go into full detail if she wanted to.

"Well yesterday started with him making me breakfast in his boxers and so I decided I had to get revenge by taking him shopping with me..."

* * *

When Tommy woke up to an empty house he couldn't hold back the smile. Last night had been a good night, no a fantastic night.

Stretching he got up and moved to the shower, getting his morning grooming done.

If Kim had left the house without waking him up - not an easy feat at all - then she was probably freaking out. And as bad as that sounded it was actually a really good thing. One of the main reasons she would be freaking out would be because she was trying to find out what last night meant and how she felt about it.

Which meant that she would have to start thinking about how she felt about him. Oh Tommy knew that she'd been pushing away seriously thinking about how she felt about him. If she hadn't been avoiding thinking about it then she would have realized that yes, she was still in love with him. Which might have made this game a little easier but he honestly didn't care, he was still having fun and he knew how this was all going to end - he'd make sure of it - so he could be patient and wait it out.

Recently he had been forced to admit the truth to himself about Kim. He had never stopped loving her, no matter what, and he knew she hadn't stopped loving him either. They had always had a special bond, and if she had stopped loving him, he would have been able to feel it.

He also knew that last night wasn't the huge victory most would have thought it to be. He knew it was just another piece to the puzzle that they made. But it had been an important step. Now she'd have to start thinking, which was exactly what he wanted her to do.

But at the moment, he was bored. He couldn't go visit Kim at work, that wouldn't be productive. She was most likely freaking out and needed this time to calm down enough to actually return home that night.

So he decided that he was going to clean a little, then he was going to cook dinner. They had both eaten enough take out for a while and he thought that she might appreciate a home cooked meal.

So after deciding that he got started.

He was going to be prepared for whatever she threw at him when she got home.

* * *

"Don't let him talk...Don't let him talk...Don't let Tommy talk..." It had become somewhat of a mantra for Kim while she was driving home from work.

She knew it wasn't going to be difficult to carry out what she had planned for that night but she figured that the extra boost that she got from repeating it over and over wouldn't hurt any.

"Don't let him talk...Don't let Tommy talk..." She murmured as she pulled into her driveway.

The man had a PhD after all, so it would probably take a lot to shut him up for a while.

But that was okay, she was looking forward to it.

"Don't let Tommy talk..." She told herself one last time as she got out of her car and walked to her door.

* * *

There was no way that Tommy had been prepared for what happened when Kim got home.

She had walked in, closed the door behind her, then walked up to him and pushed him against the wall and started kissing him. She didn't even let him talk, every time he tried to say anything she kissed him again. After a minute or two he stopped trying to talk and just went with it.

* * *

A little while later they had made it to the living room. They were both laying on the ground, taking a break while trying to get their breath back and their hearts back to a normal beat when Tommy opened his mouth.

"Wow, where did that come from?" He asked, slightly teasing.

He watched as Kim's eyes narrowed slightly before she pulled him to her, again.

He didn't get his answer, but he really didn't care, mostly cause he'd forgotten the question anyway.

* * *

Please review and tell me what you think!


	5. Chapter 5

Declaring War

Disclaimer: Trust me, if I owned PR, you'd so know I owned it...But you know, if you ever wanna give it away...

AN - Sorry it took me so long to update. The plot bunny for this got a little lost so I had to go find it and those buggers can be fast, and they bite. But I finally caught it and put it in it's new shiny metal cage so let's hope it doesn't chew it's way through this one. Anyway this chapter is a little one, but the next one will be longer. Promise!!

Please read and enjoy, and review when you finish!! :P

* * *

Tommy woke up with a grin on his face. Rolling over onto the other side of the bed he discovered that Kim had once again snuck past him to go to work. He found he couldn't really be bothered by the thought though after what had happened the night before. Last night, and part of this morning really, had been one of the best nights of his life. He couldn't believe how everything had worked out. He had had everything planned out for last night and he hadn't needed any of it.

He had been almost sure that Kim was going to protest a little longer, but last night after she had got home from work she had made it perfectly clear where they stood, the only thing better had been when they talked-

His thoughts faltered for a moment, his grin sliding off his face to be replaced with a frown as he re-thought about the night before.

It took him a moment but he finally figured it out. Every time he had started to say something her eyes had narrowed at him and she jumped him, and by the time they had finally gotten around to eating they had been so out of breath it took everything to eat, talking had been way to much.

"Holy crap, she got me." He said out loud, amazed. "She freaking tricked me."

He shook his head, thinking about what this meant. Kim was still playing the game, still resisting his advances, and had simply come up with a new way of attack that she thought he wouldn't recognize until too late, she had been right but she probably still thought he hadn't figured it out yet. Which meant if he could somehow twist this, it could turn out to be good for him.

He just had to figure out how.

Sitting up he threw the covers back and stood up, walking to the shower. He had a lot to think about and very little time to plan and start setting up before she would be back from work. It was already noon and he had been sleeping so he was going to have to work fast.

He need a new plan of attack, something she wouldn't be expecting. Something that would tip the scales and end this game. Playing this cat and mouse was fun, but he'd rather have an answer than be left wondering.

Turning the shower on and waiting until it was the perfect temperature something started to form in his mind and he smirked as he stepped into the shower. He had the beginnings of a plan, and it wouldn't take long to set up.

"Everything is going to turn out okay." He said out loud, laughing a little.

And if that laugh was slightly familiar to the days when he had worn green, well, no one was around to hear it.

* * *

Kim had put this morning out of her mind so she could work. She didn't think about how amazing last night had been, or how good it felt waking up in Tommy's arms, again. Nope, instead she concentrated on work and was currently in the middle of finishing up an email to a client.

So of course that's when it all hit her and wouldn't let go of her mind.

She had to push herself away from her desk as her mind took her on an minute to minute replay of the night before. She put her head in her hands and hid a moan or a groan. She couldn't tell anymore. Tommy was turning into the best and worst thing that had ever happened to her.

She didn't know what was wrong with her. She was enjoying this week way more than what she was supposed to. What would happen when Tommy went back home next week, and why the hell did that thought make her so unhappy if she thought she wasn't ready for what Tommy wanted?

She had to stop and think for a moment. She knew she loved him, she knew that eventually they would end up together, Tommy was nothing if not stubborn and while she was also stubborn, well, he could out do her in persistence any day. If only by the fact that he knew that if he was annoying enough she'd give in just to make him shut up. But she had to think about it seriously for a moment. Was she fighting this just for the sake of fighting this? Was being stubborn really worth it?

Here Tommy was, the man she had always loved and wanted, offering her everything she'd always wanted. Was she really going to be a fool and keep telling him no, or trying to fight this. What if he thought she was serious when she protested and he walked away, what would she do than?

She hit herself in the forehead with the palm of her hand. She was being stupid. Sure the game was fun, but he had proved by now he was serious. Hell, he had survived shopping with her with minimal complaints. That alone should have told her this was a serious to the death kind of thing, and here she was still fighting it. Even after a whole night of sex and the morning after.

Shaking her head she came up with a new thought. She was going to go home straight after work and tell him that she was in love with him, she was going to tell him the truth, and admit everything and see where it went from there. By damn, this was all going to finally happen, it was about damn time. She was going to rush home and get herself some of her Tommy.

Right after she finished work, and hopefully her nerves would shut up by then.

* * *

Please review and let me know what you think!!


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